Playwright Terry Johnson has the extraordinary knack of successfully blending together the most unlikely characters.

Marilyn Monroe meets up with Albert Einstein in Insignificance while Hysteria brings together Salvador Dali and Sigmund Freud.

Similarly, in this current production by the Wick Theatre Company, he has blended two disparate subjects and created a curious hybrid.

This adult play depicts a marriage which has its problems, as the husband, Richard, is going through a period of impotence and seems reluctant to go along with his wife's attempts to rectify the situation.

Despite receiving counselling, he just accepts the situation - much to the despair and frustration of his wife, Ellie, who in addition to having unfulfilled urges is conscious of her biological clock running down and desperate to have a child.

Amid all this angst and bickering, Johnson works in the lunatic world of the Dead Funny Society of which Richard is the president. This society exists for its members to keep alive the memory of the great comics whose roots lay in the days of the music hall and to enact some of their old routines.

Ellie is not part of the society and is very much the outsider looking on, making mocking and caustic comments, referring to the members as Anoraks.

Chief among these Anoraks is Brian, who arrives during Ellie's latest attempts at arousing her husband, to announce that Benny Hill has just died. A series of hilarious scenes then follow as they are joined by two other members, Nick and Lisa. Mayhem breaks out as skeletons start to come out of the closet.

Judith Berrill is touching in her desperation for motherhood and captures well Ellie's moods of sexual frustration and anger.

Her feistiness is counter-balanced by Kevin Isaac's frigid Richard, who only comes to life when acting out his comic heroes with his pal, Nick, played by John Garland. This pair bring to life classic routines from the likes of Eric and Ernie, Jimmy James and Benny Hill himself.

As Brian, Bob Ryder gives a delicate touch to the character's campness.

His comic portrayal never loses sight of the man's pathetic nature.

Great comedic talent is also shown by Zoe Edden. Her droll performance of Lisa is a highlight of the evening.

It is a bold choice of play and one which may shock with its frankness.